Battle Studies The Second Battle of Ypres 1915

A German long-range bombardment of Ypres starts up

One of the signals for the German infantry to begin their attack on the French front line was that a shell would be fired onto Ypres from the 42cm Big Bertha gun, which was located in the Houthulst Forest. (The Houthulst Forest can be seen on the map below in the top left hand corner.)

The first shell from this huge gun, therefore, coincided with the release of the gas from the German front line. With this a heavy bombardment of Ypres was started up by the Big Bertha gun and other long-range German howitzers.

An account by a British soldier, who was resting in Ypres and out of the line at the time of the German attack, described the scene in the town:

"We ran out into the street and discovered that the town was being heavily bombarded; the Germans were showering the road running along the eastern bank of the canal with projectiles. The road was littered with dead and dying horses and destroyed wagons. The enemy's aim was obviously to hinder any forward movement of ammunition. Terrified women and children fled into the fields around the town, where many lost their lives." (1)

Acknowledgements

(1) Der Völkerkrieg, V. Band, p. 165

Copyright Joanna Legg & Graham Parker © 2002 All rights reserved